Plastic Free Statement
Back in the summer of 2020, a year no one will ever forget, I found out about Plastic free communities and applied for my first plastic free award.
As a family we are very eco conscious, so it was time to do this for my business too!
To achieve plastic free status, I had to do an audit of all the single use plastic that I use in my business and replace 3 items. I was surprised at how much I used and had never even thought about!
I decided to replace my plastic print packaging, plastic parcel tape and the plastic packaging from the chocolate that I give to clients.
You can read my first plastic free blog article here: Plastic Free Poole
Since receiving this award I have continued to replace my single use plastic items that I use in my business.
In 2024 I received my silver award for cutting out some of the "worst offenders" of single plastic items and spreading the word about the scheme. I managed to do this though an article in the local newspaper, frequently sharing on social media, and talking about it with customers and other local business owners.
In 2025, I achieved gold! I have continued to replace even more single use plastic items that I use in my business ( I have almost completely cut these out now!) hosted a beach clean complete with brand audit of the rubbish collected and continued to spread the word about plastic free communities.
Single use plastic swaps
Here are the swaps that I have made in my business (some were easier than others!)
- Plastic print packaging was replaced with brown paper envelopes or tissue paper, which are both recyclable.
- Plastic parcel tape was simply swapped for paper parcel tape. I was truly surprised why I had not thought about doing this sooner, paper parcel tape even looks better than plastic!
- The plastic bags for chocolate were replaced with paper sweetie bags and sealed with a paper sticker.
- Client snacks. I used to offer biscuit snack packs which were of course wrapped in single use plastic. This took me a long time to figure out, as I discovered that even packaging that claimed to be "compostable" was really not, as it needs certain conditions to break down, which rarely exist. At the moment I offer paper wrapped confectionery and brownies and cookies purchased directly from a bakery and stored in clip lock jars.
- Balloons and disposable decorations for cake smash sessions. As a natural , eco conscious photographer, balloons simply had to be a no no for me as soon as I started doing cake smash sessions back in 2022. All of the decorations that I use are re usable and many are upcycled from other materials.
- Single use wipes. Instead of wipes I provide cloths for cleaning baby during cake smash sessions.
- Cleaning products - Instead of wipes, or single use cleaning sprays, I use Ocean Saver anti bac cleaner and purchase refils instead of new bottles each time.
- Drinks bottles - instead of plastic bottles of water, I have a glass water carafe and re useable cups.
- Disposable changing mats were swapped out for washable ones which I absolutely love! Not only has this made a good impact on the environment, it has actually saved me money! My clients love them too, and often ask where I got them from. Reusable Baby Wipes | Cloth Baby Wipes | Cheeky Wipes
As a family we are very eco conscious, so it was time to do this for my business too!
To achieve plastic free status, I had to do an audit of all the single use plastic that I use in my business and replace 3 items. I was surprised at how much I used and had never even thought about!
I decided to replace my plastic print packaging, plastic parcel tape and the plastic packaging from the chocolate that I give to clients.
You can read my first plastic free blog article here: Plastic Free Poole
Since receiving this award I have continued to replace my single use plastic items that I use in my business.
In 2024 I received my silver award for cutting out some of the "worst offenders" of single plastic items and spreading the word about the scheme. I managed to do this though an article in the local newspaper, frequently sharing on social media, and talking about it with customers and other local business owners.
In 2025, I achieved gold! I have continued to replace even more single use plastic items that I use in my business ( I have almost completely cut these out now!) hosted a beach clean complete with brand audit of the rubbish collected and continued to spread the word about plastic free communities.
Single use plastic swaps
Here are the swaps that I have made in my business (some were easier than others!)
- Plastic print packaging was replaced with brown paper envelopes or tissue paper, which are both recyclable.
- Plastic parcel tape was simply swapped for paper parcel tape. I was truly surprised why I had not thought about doing this sooner, paper parcel tape even looks better than plastic!
- The plastic bags for chocolate were replaced with paper sweetie bags and sealed with a paper sticker.
- Client snacks. I used to offer biscuit snack packs which were of course wrapped in single use plastic. This took me a long time to figure out, as I discovered that even packaging that claimed to be "compostable" was really not, as it needs certain conditions to break down, which rarely exist. At the moment I offer paper wrapped confectionery and brownies and cookies purchased directly from a bakery and stored in clip lock jars.
- Balloons and disposable decorations for cake smash sessions. As a natural , eco conscious photographer, balloons simply had to be a no no for me as soon as I started doing cake smash sessions back in 2022. All of the decorations that I use are re usable and many are upcycled from other materials.
- Single use wipes. Instead of wipes I provide cloths for cleaning baby during cake smash sessions.
- Cleaning products - Instead of wipes, or single use cleaning sprays, I use Ocean Saver anti bac cleaner and purchase refils instead of new bottles each time.
- Drinks bottles - instead of plastic bottles of water, I have a glass water carafe and re useable cups.
- Disposable changing mats were swapped out for washable ones which I absolutely love! Not only has this made a good impact on the environment, it has actually saved me money! My clients love them too, and often ask where I got them from. Reusable Baby Wipes | Cloth Baby Wipes | Cheeky Wipes
How you can get involved
If you run your own small to medium sized business, you can also apply to become a plastic free champion:
Home - Plastic Free Communities (local groups can also get involved)
If you don't own a business, you can make your own swaps at home, every little helps. Perhaps you could use some of my ideas above.
If you run your own small to medium sized business, you can also apply to become a plastic free champion:
Home - Plastic Free Communities (local groups can also get involved)
If you don't own a business, you can make your own swaps at home, every little helps. Perhaps you could use some of my ideas above.
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